Just What the Patient Ordered.

In the argot of regulators, this exchange constitutes what is known as "establishing a doctor-patient relationship" - a prerequisite that dates back to at least 1951, when Congress amended the Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act to classify certain drugs as potentially unsafe to take without a medical professional's recommendation, i.e., a prescription. In a familiar Silicon Valley refrain, direct-to-consumer telemedicine companies insulate themselves from criticism over treatment decisions by saying that they are merely facilitating interactions between patients and physicians who work for third-party "doctor networks." To prescribe medications, Hims partners with an outside firm called Bailey Health, which pays physicians between $120 and $150 an hour. But the direct-to-consumer startups inhabit a legal gray area: "These companies are not manufacturers, labelers, or medical practitioners. [Extracted from the article]